In search of a gender bilingual company

Transcription

2012 SURVEY
WOMEN LEADERS SPEAK OUT!
How to move towards a new culture that acknowledges
gender differences as complementary
MARCH 2012 © JUMP & EVE-OLUTION SURVEY
2
Women leaders speak out!
This survey analyses the responses of over 400 women in decision-making roles across
a variety of sectors in Europe. It was produced in collaboration with the UK-based
organisation eve-olution and Brussels-based JUMP. The survey results were compared
and contrasted to the previous survey that was conducted in 2005 in the UK only and
based on the original survey from 2003.
In view of the last McKinsey “Women Matter” report in the
UK and significant activity in Europe to advance women
leaders, executive ranks are still dominated by men.
The survey attempts to address women’s perceptions
about barriers to their progress and why some choose to
leave corporate life all together. Many myths perpetuate
about the exodus of women, not least that they are leaving
to raise families or are not career motivated. However,
this research shows that these reasons account for little
when women think of leaving. The respondents are
moving away from a culture that fails to acknowledge
“difference”, or interprets difference to mean
“inferior”. Around 90% of respondents stated that they
would be more likely to stay in an organisation whose
values were in line with their own.
What does a “gender bilingual company” mean?
A “gender bilingual company” is the term used by
Avivah Wittenberg-Cox and Alison Maitland in their book
Why Women Mean Business. In this survey, becoming
bilingual begins with a shift in perspective. Only
once all managers understand that the methods and
messages used to recruit, manage and evaluate men do
not necessarily work for women will women’s talents stand
a chance of being accurately recognised and optimised.
According to Tracey Carr from eve-olution, we can
also talk about a “cultured” company. In other words,
a company that has moved to a whole new way of
operating by embracing men and women as equal
but different. Such a company is highly sophisticated in
training and developing its staff, positively rewards effort
and achievement, and places a value on communication,
team building and relationships..
A truly “cultured” organisation, as rare as they are, provides huge benefits
to both men and women. Those leaders still in denial on this subject often
think this is about positive discrimination – the reality is that this is about
creating a people and service proposition that delivers very real competitive advantage.
The opportunity to realise a competitive advantage is now – but, as the survey clearly
indicates, a ma jority of organisations do not yet recognise this gap in their performance.
Jan Babiak - UK Area Managing Partner Ernst & Young’s
only female Managing Partner Winner of “First Women Award” 2005
eve-olution • eve-olution.net
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IN SEARCH OF A GENDER
BILINGUAL COMPANY
The survey questions
1
women’s skills
and work styles
2
working relationships
with male and female
colleagues
3
flexible working and
career development
4
corporate
attitude towards
women
5
career
progression and
retention initiatives
6
training and
coaching
Table of contents
Key findings ................................................................................................................................................ 4
Key conclusions ......................................................................................................................................... 4
Profile of the panel ....................................................................................................................................5
Women’s skills and work styles ..........................................................................................................7
Corporate attitude towards women ................................................................................................7
Women, men and working relationships ...................................................................................... 8
Female role models ................................................................................................................................. 9
Female leadership ................................................................................................................................. 10
Work-life balance and career development .............................................................................. 12
What would increase your motivation? ....................................................................................... 13
Initiatives to develop ............................................................................................................................. 15
What has changed in 10 years? ....................................................................................................... 16
Testimonials on active women’s lives ........................................................................................... 17
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BILINGUAL COMPANY
4
Key findings
95%
believe that they are
not recognised or
promoted on an
equal basis to men.
67% in 2005.
75%
agreed that
companies do
not place a high
enough value
on skills such as
communication,
team building and
relationships.
79% in 2005.
74%
85%
believe that not
enough time and
money is invested
in training men
and women to work
more effectively
together.
say that having a
female role model
is important for
career success.
81% in 2005.
73%
believe that
men are often
uncomfortable
around influential
women.
80% in 2005.
82% in 2005.
Key conclusions
The results show that since the last survey was conducted in 2005 many more women believe that their
corporate environment does not recognise that their strengths and skills are different from male colleagues,
but equally valuable for the company’s success.
Gender differences in values, skills and behaviour
are now recognised as a practical reality by the
overwhelming majority of senior women.
Gender differences, therefore, need to be recognised
as probably the most fundamental component of all
the diversity issues that an organisation faces.
In respect of gender differences, the concept of
“diversity awareness training” needs to be actively
transformed into one of becoming a truly “cultured”
organisation and embedded into the fabric of the
organisation.
The goal of the “cultured organisation” is to provide
male and female employees with a deep understanding
of masculine and feminine leadership in terms of skills,
traits and abilities. In other words, efforts need to be
made to widen the acceptable range of leadership
styles to become a truly inclusive organisation that
enables everyone to achieve optimal performance.
JUMP• jump.eu.com
BILINGUAL COMPANY
Profile of the panel
Age
34%
29%
25%
Over 400 women took part in the survey. They are all
based in Europe and have a university (77%) or higher
academic degree (18%). Approximately 32% of these
women are currently working on a flexible basis or in
a job share.
What is the size
7%
4%
<25
35-44
26-34
0-50 employees
of your organisation?
15%
2,501-10,000 employees
11%
2,501-10,000 employees
25%
How many people are you responsible for?
53%
1-10
48%
11-50
22%
10%
Female
65+
14%
501-2,500 employees
Do you report to a
male or a female?
55-64
32%
51-250 employees
Male
45-54
1%
Both
13%
51-100
2%
101-250
2%
251-500
1%
501-1,000
1%
Over 1,000
1%
Not relevant
30%
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BILINGUAL COMPANY
Your job level
To what job level do you aspire?
42%
14%
8%
16%
12%
12%
11%
6%
Employee
Middle Management
Manager
Consultant
Senior
Manager
9%
9% 10%
9%
5%
4%
Board of
Directors
CEO
Managing
Director
Executive Director
Partner
Business
Owner
I don’t aspire
to a new level
14%
How long do you think it will
take you to get to this level?
2%
<1 year
26%
25%
6%
7%
1-2 years
2-5 years
5 years+
Never
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BILINGUAL COMPANY
Women’s skills and work styles
95%
71%
95% of the respondents believe that as leaders,
women bring different but complementary skills to
the workplace.
71% think that companies do not place a high enough
value on women skills • 75% of the respondents think
that women are better at communication, team building
and forging relations with staff and clients compared to
male colleagues.
79% in 2005.
60%
60% find that corporate training and development
activities generally do not take into account women’s
learning preferences and styles.
Corporate attitude towards women
Some companies recognise the value of having women in senior positions, but
not all of them take active measures to change the status quo.
According to 69%, women are still not
recognised and promoted on an equal
basis with their male colleagues.
Around 72% think that when key decisions
are being made, men’s opinions are
respected more than women’s.
67% in 2005.
72%
69%
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BILINGUAL COMPANY
Women/Men working relationships
74%
74% think that not enough time or money is invested in training
and coaching women and men on how to work more effectively
with each other.
82% in 2005.
According to 73%, men are
often uncomfortable around
influential women.
According to 62%, men are more
comfortable working with other
men than with women.
I think that, in the workplace, a lot of women
are afraid to talk about gender issues with
colleagues, even if they are women. It
is as if they rather prefer to ignore the issue. Just
doing your utmost and coping with work-life balance
in silence without complaining, is the tacit code of
conduct and a lot of women behave accordingly.
55%
Just over half (55%) of the surveyed women are not
comfortable during corporate entertainment and other
business working events.
The area where I personally feel gender inequality most striking in my
professional life is during business entertainment (dinners, conferences)
where events are designed to entertain men (female belly dancers, etc.) rather
than women, which sometimes makes me really uncomfortable. In addition, decisions
by companies to sponsor events also often disproportionately reflect male preferences
(more money into football matches than into breast cancer...).
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BILINGUAL COMPANY
Men’s opinions are often presented
better, which is why they are heard.
They are presented in a way man
can hear them. The same with networking,
it’s not unfriendly for women, but it is a
male way of networking. I now often go to
female networking events and am struck by
the supportive atmosphere and cooperative
approach. It works for me!
9
Being in IT and
working for a bank
it is just a boys’ club.
I’m tired of arguing. I prefer
to channel my energy into my
family where I always get a
positive response.
Female role models
I agree with the statement that female role models should not act like men in
the workplace. I would like female role models to be themselves and consider
their differences as being a rich asset, and feel proud about that.
For 85% of the respondents, having
female role models is important for
women to succeed in the workplace.
85%
81% in 2005.
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BILINGUAL COMPANY
10
Female leadership
90% believe that companies benefit when they have women in senior positions.
But only 47% find that companies recognise it!
90%
The issue is that as some women have to work twice as hard as men to prove
their added value to the company, some of them tend to act like men in order
to reach top positions. This creates a far worse management style than when
there are only men.
92% of the surveyed women believe
in their abilities to lead.
90% are more likely to stay in an organisation whose
values are in line with their own.
98% in 2005.
Women should be encouraged
to design their workplace and
take leadership in expressing
their needs and career ambitions, not
adapt to pre-existing conditions to become
managers.
JUMP• jump.eu.com
BILINGUAL COMPANY
The issue is not men versus women. Rather we are all different and unique
and the best you can do is to be yourself. I do not believe in the assertion that
companies benefit more when women are in leadership positions. Speaking of
my organisation, there is no evidence to back this up. On the contrary, there are a number
of women in leadership positions who tend to do more harm to the women’s cause than
the men do. What I want is authentic and great leaders, be they men or women, I do not
care. But it may actually be the case that the great leader could be a woman.
Women won’t neccessarily
leave
an
organisation
where there is a mismatch
in values, they are more likely to
stay and just stop trying, assuming
everywhere will be the same.
I believe that companies
benefit
from
women
leaders because I believe
that diversity is a source of richness
and gives companies a competitive
advantage. In the same way I
believe that people from different
cultures, sexual orientation and social
backgrounds all contribute to the
richness of a company.
Working in a research
organisation,
full
of
engineers
and
PhD’s,
the female skills are very much
underestimated and undervalued!
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BILINGUAL COMPANY
12
Work-life balance and career development
Once everyone starts looking at flexible working and job share options as
a non-gender specific solution and it becomes acceptable/expected for
men and women to take advantage of these options, there will be much less
concern about the impact on career advancement.
For 41% of the respondents, family
obligations are a barrier to
career advancement.
Only 58% of them benefit from flexible
hours and/or childcare arrangements
within their company.
38% in 2005.
Around
66%
think
that
flexible working and job share
options are obstacles to career
advancement.
I feel that for the moment
my family obligations
are more important to
me. If I chose to make my career
the priority, I guess everyone would
have to follow and adjust as it is me
who is responsible for organising
the family.
However, 90% think that flexible
hours and/or childcare arrangements
encourage women to remain in or
return to the workplace.
Every
working
mother
organises
her
work-life
balance differently, but all
the women managers I know, either
have no children or they “outsource”
their children to a very high extent.
Being a real mum and developing a real
career, is not possible. It really is not.
For me it’s push/pull. I am prioritising my family over my career for now. With
my line of work it means not pursuing certain roles at big banks. However, my
skills are still tested and current as my firm is small, cutting edge and flexible.
That has “bought” my loyalty.
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BILINGUAL COMPANY
13
What would increase your motivation?
78%
Motivating
72%
49%
interventions
39%
32% 36%
A lot
14%
A little
Not at all
18%
3%
Personal
development
and learning
88% are motivated
by recognition,
respect and teamspirit.
64% are motivated by learning and
development.
6%
3%
Increasing
confidence in
personal skills
and abilities
Being
supported
in networking
activities
72% are motivated
by being valued and
listened to.
61% are motivated by the freedom
to be comfortable and natural.
Gender
specific
development tends
to
marginalise
the value and is subject to
extreme criticism in most
companies.
16%
Provision of
gender specific
leadership
development
66% are motivated
by being able to
make a difference.
51% are motivated by opportunities
for advancement.
Men and women need to have
programmes that provide a
path to working more effectively
together. However, I do believe that women
should seek out networks that promote and
develop women in leadership.
Having attended a gender specific leadership course, I can say that I gained
more from the course than usual. However, I think all genders/nationalities/
disabilities should be discussed openly and discrepancies in career
developments highlighted.
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BILINGUAL COMPANY
The problem with gender specific leadership development is that it seems to
focus on something women “miss” and need to learn. This approach is wrong.
Women should be encouraged to design their workplace and take leadership
in expressing their needs and career ambitions, not adapt to pre-existing conditions
to become managers. Also it is not effective unless it is backed up with a concrete
commitment to actually put women in senior management positions.
What motivates you in the workplace?
Do a job that I like, that
is interesting with equal
recognition
(social
and
financial) as men receive and have
total flexibility to take care of my family
at the same time. I do not want any
arrangement to take care of my children.
I can do the job AND take care of them
after school hours.
Equal
pay
and
opportunity for women
motivates me to be the
best I can be!
Like all business people
I am motivated by
developing the business
and creating profit. That is the best
way to prove my skills. Honestly, I
don’t have the time nor the energy
to think about gender issues. It
takes a lot of precious time. We
women also need to understand
men, they act differently and that
has to be understood. They also
tend to play the emotional card as
a strategy for “war” so we should
never fall for being provoked by
that.
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BILINGUAL COMPANY
Initiatives to develop
67%
66%
{
70%
{
Initiatives to develop
{
41%
35% 35%
Outstandingly
13%
Adequately
Very little
Flexible working
benefits
{
9%
Progressive maternity
leave and childcare
programmes
48%
{
{
50%
35%
14%
22%
12%
Gender specific
leadership
development
25%
13%
7%
Formal/informal
channels for dealing with
confidential issues
69% think that leaders and decision
makers don’t fully understand the real
value of gender diversity in business.
51% find that companies must still make
proactive changes to encourage women
to make a contribution.
51%
Organisational
development/
resctructuring
21%
Role modelling
17%
6%
36%
7%
34%
{
55%
25%
20%
7%
Other work-life
balance initiatives
22%
59%
{
21%
5%
Coaching
38%
16%
16%
5%
59%
36%
33%
24%
Mentoring
63%
27%
14%
4%
{
Not at all
26%
42%
69%
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BILINGUAL COMPANY
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What has changed in 10 years?
2003
2005
Companies don’t place a high value
on “female” skills
80%
79%
Women are not recognised or promoted
equally to men
69%
67%
Female role models are key
89%
82%
More investment needed in training men
and women to work effectively together
78%
82%
2012
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BILINGUAL COMPANY
Testimonials on active women’s lives
I do hope that this survey makes
a difference. I would like my
daughter to be happy and not
to suffer the rudeness, lack of respect and
general shit that I have had to take during
my working life, especially here in Belgium.
So far the worst working environment I have
come across.
Cultural issues are
also a problem. I
work for a Japanese
company. In Japan, women
either have a family or a
career and senior Japanese
management are not familiar
with these issues.
It is time for companies to recognise the tremendous value they have in
hiring, developing and promoting women to lead business into the future. It
seems that many younger women think that gender does not matter. They
still think that they will be evaluated on their ability and paid an equal wage as their
male colleagues. Until they experience discrimination themselves, they do not believe
it exists. The result is that many talented, well-educated women simply drop out of the
corporate hierarchy because they do not want to choose between family and career
obligations or fight the corporate politics to break through the glass ceiling. Let’s work
towards changing this now.
Because I could not find
any interesting job with
flexible time to take care of
my children after school, I started my
own business nine years ago.
I work in a very male
area and I do feel I have
to work twice as hard to
prove myself, run twice as fast to be
respected.
I think the only way to address the imbalance in the UK is for gender quotas at
board level for listed companies. The lack of role models is a barrier for women,
this drives a lack of confidence and business is not addressing this issue.
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BILINGUAL COMPANY
It has been difficult to answer your questions. I have been working for more
than five years for a company, headed by two women. My conclusions are
that whether you are a woman or a man, it is your skills as a manager that
make you the right person in the right place. I am not afraid to say that my MD is awful
even though she is a powerful woman in her field. For example, the deputy MD decided to
take a 60% working schedule after coming back from her six-month parental leave. The
MD never forgave her for having taken this decision and she undermines her by playing
political games among the other members of the management team. Dreadful!
The company I work for
takes pride in its so-called
initiatives
promoting
women’s career tracks. They show us
videos about more senior women in
the company “juggling” their career
with their families. These women are
“allowed” to start work at 4am and
are then able to get off at 4pm to pick
up their kids from school! They feed
their kids and after that, they go back
to work, obviously... Women friendly?
Really? And yet I don’t see any of
my male colleagues do this. Most of
the wives of my male colleagues are
entirely responsible for raising the
kids.
We need good role models,
a balance of women and
men in key positions.
Work-life balance is the
critical issue in my career.
I know so many women
who are trying to manage it all with
the current system and their health
is suffering (ie burnout or other
illnesses). It is a real challenge in the
modern work environment.
Amazing the difference
between the “discourse”,
the corporate policy & the
vision of the manager in charge! You
can have all the policies you want but
if you have one leading element that
does not follow, your policy is not valid
and HR loses credibility to promote
diversity at work. Only when we have
leaders taking parental leave or with
working spouses, will it change...
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I work in the Perfume &
Cosmetics industry where
80% of the staff is female.
Many women have a top management
function but I have to admit they are
not necessarily good role models for
younger women. They appear to be
very emotional and tough to build
relationships with. I definitely prefer
to work in a male environment!
BILINGUAL COMPANY
After 30 years of a
corporate career I left a
patriarchal company (one
of many) and am now running my own
business. I work closely with Women
in Technology Groups across the UK.
The situation is almost static. There
is lots of activity on behalf of women
and very little change despite this. I
find this frustrating and galling!
I cannot progress in my organisation any further. It is male dominated at the
top and the men are generally only interested in progressing the careers of
other men whom they regard as pseudo sons or brothers. There are exceptions
to this but they are rare. I have recognised this and am looking to move to a different
organisation. My organisation is also very conservative in its working practices and has
very few possibilities for flexible working etc.
I continue to work voluntarily in my own time to encourage and mentor younger
women and to advocate for change internally. I am one of the few women in
IT and one with a wealth of experience of over 25 years. The challenges I see
are that the “old boys’ network”, as we call it, continues to thrive and can often be seen
in the case when a new senior manager brings along a known male colleague into a
key role or appoints a female personality type who executes rather than leads. This
is, however, a generalisation. I have also witnessed among my peers and clients some
exceptional male and female leaders who see the merits of improving gender equality in
the workplace. Either way, it continues in my opinion to be a struggle to place, and more
importantly keep, women in senior/key positions rather than adopt a natural evolution
based on expertise, recognition or potential. It is for this reason that I believe, especially
in the corporate environment where female numbers are challenged in fields of Science,
Engineering and IT, that women seek promotion by moving to softer skill areas such as
communications and marketing or leave completely to become entrepreneurs or small
business owners. Even in Europe where we have established markets, there is still more
work to be done to improve the landscape for young women to shape their career paths
in business.
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In search of a gender bilingual company

Transcription

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